Second Best
by Punkasrocer1
Summary: After yet another miserable defeat, Tatewaki Kuno is ready to re-evaluate his life and perhaps turn his search for love in a new direction.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

A crushing blow sent the captain of the Furinkan High kendo club sprawling through the dirt. Emerging from the murk of the dust, Tatewaki Kuno leaned forward onto his wooden katana and managed to muster a few words.

"Ranma Saotome, you bastard... how can you allow yourself to see the Kuno name degraded so?!"

"Kuno, Schmuno. What the hell are you going on about? Have you had enough, or what?" Ranma taunted.

Tatewaki wiped away a trickle of blood from his nose. His robe was torn in places, and conspicuously marked with dirt. Kuno himself was spent.

"You've bested me today, but I'll have you know that this is far from over."

Ranma's eyes were just about rolling out of his head at this point.

The kendo captain continued, "for I am Tatewaki Kuno, the Blue Thun-"

"Yeah, yeah, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High, aged seventeen, we've heard it a million times already."

Kuno slowly ascended to an upright position. He took a moment to compose himself before saying "Such disrespect... I'd expect nothing more from a person of such low birth."

Ranma shrugged. "Hey, I ain't losing no sleep over it."

Akane Tendo, who had been watching the fight from the sidelines shouted "and there's no reason he should, either!"

Tatewaki turned to walk away. It pained him to see Akane take the side of that lout. Looking back he shouted "Akane Tendo! You'll see it my way one day, just you wait!"

"Fat chance," Ranma and Akane muttered in unison.

As Kuno made his ignominious trek home, his thoughts were abound with muck. If any divine beings held the Kuno clan in their favor, they made little attempt to show it.

Through his walk through the city of Nerima, Kuno's mind began:

_ "I can see a wall of roses, set alight, and the ashes of love scattered thousands of miles out of my reach. Though my heart beats, with every beat there is a different ache. My heart is brittle, like the bones of an old man. If only my heart were stone."_

Tatewaki looked at the shops and mid-rise buildings as he trudged ahead. "There is something ugly about this labyrinth of concrete", he spoke, to no one in particular.

He passed a gruff middle-aged man leaning against a wall, smoking a cigarette. Suddenly, an impulse grabbed him.

"Kind sir, could you find it in your heart to spare a cigarette?"

The man let out a grunt and handed him a smoke.

"And I hate to impose any more on you, but you wouldn't happen to have a lighter?"

The man let out another grunt, and a fart, and mumbled "matches. I got matches."

Kuno pretended to take no notice of the man's gaseous release as he lit the cigarette with a match. "Thank you kind sir, I am forever in your debt".

The man said nothing in reply. A second fart of astonishing resonance and bouquet sent Kuno on his way. Walking down a crowded street, he took his first drag. His ensuing coughing fit began promptly.

_"My pristine, virgin lungs can become as black as coal for all it matters to the world."_

His first drag was too big. He brought the cigarette to his lips and inhaled softly. He let the smoke sift in his lungs for a moment, then he exhaled the plume. He could feel a pleasant tingle building up in his shins and slowly ascending his body. He took another, somewhat larger drag and felt the effects intensify.

Up and down his spine there was a soft pressure, and on his skull there were sensory waves slowly pulsing. For nicotine-naive Kuno, even this single cigarette was having a sensational impact. He even, for just a moment, forgot about Ranma Saotome and Akane Tendo and the Pig-tailed Girl.

That is, until unkind reality pawed at him when he turned a corner and bumped into Nabiki Tendo.

"Kuno baby!" She said. Then her eyes turned toward the cigarette in his hand. "Are you smoking? Wow, Ranma must've really done you a number to see you trying to relieve your stress in the commoner's fashion! And you're all dirty. C'mon, don't let him beat you up so much."

"Don't patronize me woman. I wish to be left alone."

"Have it your way then, Mr. Moody. I'll catch you later!" Nabiki flashed him a smile and went off on her own. He continued his own journey home.

As Tatewaki arrived at the gate of the Kuno shrine, he paused to think about his encounter with Nabiki.

_"It was almost as if someone cared for me..."_


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Soft footsteps guided Tatewaki through the garden of the Kuno estate.

The declining sun cast elongated shadows on the pretty flowers that surrounded him. They seemed to beckon to him. Accepting their invitation, Kuno took a seat on the grass. He grazed his hand through the various flora before settling on a daffodil, which he plucked from the soil, bringing it beneath his nose. The aroma of the flower mingled with the lingering scent of tobacco on his hand like some sort of confused perfume. Not terribly impressed with the olfactory combination, he lowered the daffodil and raised his head to the horizon, absentmindedly tugging away petals as he watched the evening redness of the sky to the west.

After a few minutes of quietly enjoying the sunset, Kuno summoned the strength to stand. _"Such a spectacular view. It's a pretty pity that I've no one to share it with but myself."_

He lowered his gaze to the daffodil that was still in his hand. All that remained on its face was a single petal. Tatewaki tightened his grip, bending the stem of the flower. A small trickle of water emerged from the cracked stalk, wetting his finger. Heaving a sigh, he plucked the final petal from the daffodil and tossed it into the flowerbed.

He then made his way across the bridge over the pond and to the threshold of his hallowed home. He opened the door and entered the front hall, warm incandescence lighting the way. The varnished hardwood floors creaked with every footfall he made. From deeper within the house a call echoed forth:

"Brother dear, is that you?"

"It is."

Tatewaki turned the corner into the kitchen where his sister Kodachi was making dinner preparations.

"Welcome home, brother dea-", Kodachi began, before turning around and noticing Kuno's dirty, tattered clothes. "My, you look like a raggedy-man who's just lost a wrestling match to a warthog. Can't you represent the House of Kuno with a little bit more dignity?"

Tatewaki stared at his sister, struggling to conceal his contempt. "Were it not for that Ranma and the way he relentlessly accosts me, I might be standing here before you in a more presentable condition."

"Ranma? _My _Ranma?" Kodachi's eyebrows narrowed and her voice assumed a more belligerent tone.

"I bet you were picking a fight with him again. The fact that the thought of lifting a finger against my beloved even enters your mind disgusts me. It makes me physically ill. Luckily Ranma always gives you the thrashing you deserve. And then after instigating the confrontation, you have the nerve to come home and cry about it. It's really quite pathetic if you think about it."

Kuno prepared to give a retaliatory speech filled to the brim with invective and poetic insults that would detail the injustices he had suffered at the hands of both Ranma and Kodachi, but he bit his lip at the last moment. Arguing with her would serve no purpose.

"I'm not crying about anything," he said. And then, softly, "don't we have anything else we can talk about?"

"Well, on the food front, I have several delicacies for your enjoyment tonight. First course, lobster bisque. Second course, filet mignon. And for desert, mango sorbet. I'm sure it will be to your liking," Kodachi said, a proud smile on her face.

"That sounds scrumptious, but I'm afraid I'll have to pass you up on your offer."

"And why is that? Is my cooking not good enough for you?" she asked, her smile rapidly evaporating.

"That's not it at all, I just harbor little appetite tonight," Kuno said.

"Little appetite? For filet mignon?" Kodachi's voice was reaching fever pitch. She turned away from him and said, "to tell me something like that, after all this work I've put in. You have no respect for me, and it makes me angry!"

"Kodachi... I don't mean it like that." He laid a hand on her shoulder. "You're my sister. My family... my blood. You mean a lot to me."

Kodachi knocked her brother's hand off of her shoulder. "Then why don't you show it for once?" she said, as she stormed out of the room.

Tatewaki sighed and headed for the baths. His house held a hot bath of magnificent proportion and splendor, and it was there that he could perhaps find a little peace and quiet.

It was there, naked and alone save for the hot water that enveloped his body, that his mind would wander farthest.

_"God, even the stars themselves conspire against my existence."_

From a young age, Tatewaki Kuno knew he was different. The grace of poetry enthralled him. The way words would arrange themselves to form something beautiful enticed him. He took to quoting from great poets, and even from lines of his own device.

He tried to share his passion with his classmates, but they all regarded him with indifference or contempt. This rejection only spurred him to more adamantly commit to the art.

As he entered adolescence, Kuno took an interest in the martial tradition of Japan, occasionally imagining himself as a feudal samurai serving under a daimyo, conquering shogunate after shogunate until a unified Japan had been bequeathed by his actions.

In his young teenage years he made deep study of Buddhist and Shinto traditions, before branching out to explore other corners of the world. He made ventures into Western philosophy, reading of Aristotle and of Socrates' drinking of the hemlock. He read surahs of the Koran, he pored over biblical passages.

So there that leaves him, culturally literate, but broadly incognizant of the ways and means of pleasant human interaction. For all the time he spent in study, the time he spent in self-examination was seldom, if ever. But for every man there must be an awakening.

Tatewaki was reclining in the bath, pondering over things, past and present. In particular he thought about what his sister had said to him. He didn't want to admit to himself that in some ways, she was right.

_"Nigh on every match I've found myself engaged in opposition to that blasted Saotome, I've come out the loser... And nigh on every match it was I that cast the first blow. Am I the aggressor? A brute who cannot restrain his emotions? Am I so easily provoked that my first inclination is to violence?"_

He thought of every minor transgression that Ranma had committed that had provoked him into drawing his sword. Kuno felt the slightest pangs of shame, something that did not often overcome him.

His thoughts then began to drift towards romance. He was feeling unusually contemplative, and began to reflect on his successes and failures in the field. To his dismay, he couldn't conjure any memory of his romantic advances meeting success.

Struck by this realization, he attempted to assess the patterns that accompanied his innumerable failed attempts at courtship. Proclamations of undying affection. Attempts to woo with poetry. Immediate and eager vice-like embraces.

_"I always assumed that a girl would admire a man with the confidence to tell her how he feels about her and without hesitation take her in his arms. But perhaps that is not so. I feel that across all aspects of my life, I have perilously ignored the virtues of restraint. I have been too forceful and overbearing with my approach to everyone. Alas, thinking of all the times I've erred, the well could be forever tainted, with little hope to remedy it."_

Brooding and aimless, Kuno removed himself from the bath and got dressed. From somewhere in the more tainted recesses of his mind, a subtle urging was directing him to the cellar. Following this instinct, he fetched a bottle of saké, and two bottles of French wine.

Having not partaken in dinner, he felt hunger gnaw at him. To alleviate this unpleasant sensation, he broke off half of a small loaf of bread and carried it and the bottles and a glass to his study. He sat down on a comfortably cushioned chair, and uncorked a bottle of wine. _"Chateau Bordeaux, 1968. A fine choice," _Kuno thought.

He was about to pour a glass when he decided that it would be more respectful of his Japanese heritage to first imbibe in the saké. He poured a tall glass and made a toast: _"To my failures..."_ He then downed the glass with ungodly swiftness.

Having done his duty to rice wine, he gave the _Chateau Bordeaux_ a chance. He did not take small sips and let the wine meander around his mouth so he could grasp its taste to the fullest extent, as was his custom. Instead he raised the chalice to his lips and took exuberant gulps, as large as his mouth would allow. The glass of considerable size was drained in seconds.

Putting his descent into inebriation on hiatus, Tatewaki took note of the great library that surrounded him in the room. Not content for mindlessness, he rose from his chair to make a selection. There was a diverse array of books upon his shelves. His hand briefly came to rest on the Analects of Confucius, but something tonight was drawing him to the lore of Christendom. He pulled a copy of the Bible off of his shelf.

It was encased in a thin layer of dust, as it had been several years since he had last opened it. He held no veneration for it as a holy book, but felt the scripture had a wealth of literary value.

He opened the book to Genesis and began to read: _"In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth."_

Kuno snorted. _"That was his first mistake."_ He again filled his glass to the brim with wine. He skipped around, settling on verses that he found poetic in nature. The effects of alcohol were beginning to creep upon him. There was a lightness in his head, and a slight dulling of his senses. There was a warm feeling jittering through his body.

He thumbed through the Old Testament, reading psalms and proverbs, while alternating between glasses of wine and saké. As the effects of the alcohol intensified, he found it more difficult to read. The room began a subtle, repetitive tilt, which he found rather pleasant. As he ventured into the New Testament of the Gospel, he grew progressively drunker. He was nibbling on the loaf of bread when he read about the Last Supper, and a thought struck him:

_"It is said in Christian tradition, that bread is the body of the messiah. Does that not make me a cannibal?"_

He broke off a chunk of bread and popped it in his mouth. "Body of Christ," he said, with bits of half-chewed bread falling out of his mouth as he spoke.

Then he took a long draft of wine straight from the bottle, and uttered: "Blood of Christ."

_"And thus the sacrament of communion is complete,"_ he thought, laughing. A hiccup interrupting his laughter only prompted more of it.

There Kuno sat, drinking wine from the bottle and blurting out random fragments of poetry to an invisible audience.

Who could have foretold the depths that Kuno would fall to that night? He lies in drink, and quotes from poets whose names are now lost.

Tatewaki was now firmly in the grip of intoxication. The wine had drenched every nerve in his head. He could not feel his fingers. His arms had the weight of lead. His stomach churned violently, and even in the safety of his chair he seemed to stagger. He could no longer read; the words blurred and shifted and spun around the page to form a literary nightmare.

In the midst of his drunkenness, a vision appears to Tatewaki of a horseman in the Mongol hordes, besetting an Asiatic city that will never be remembered in the annals of man, so utter is the destruction that shall befall it.

As the walls and fortifications crumble in the wake of overwhelming might, the horseman rides ahead into the doomed city. Through the aether of time and space Kuno journeys to plant an embryo of himself in the horseman's mind that gestates instantaneously so that it is Kuno who is the Mongol on the horse.

Sallying forth with his comrades, he lets out a curdling shriek of war to signal to all of the inhabitants of this nameless city that they are as good as dead. The men of the surrendering garrison lay down their arms and beg for mercy, the reply from the horde is a rain of arrows. There will be no salvation. The savages will have their way.

Kuno the Rider is holding aloft a torch. He throws it onto a thatched roof. The town will burn, it is inevitable. One by one, the buildings go up in flames. Those who flee the flames are hacked to pieces by Mongol swords. Those who stay inside meet an even grimmer fate.

Men and women, young and old run through the smoke-filled streets in a vain attempt to escape their fates.

With pillage and wanton slaughter in the air, Kuno the Mongol wants his share of the spoils of war. He catches sight of a girl, not older than sixteen, trying to make her escape. He spurs on his horse to catch her, cornering her in an alley. When there is nowhere left for her to run, he dismounts his steed.

He is cavalier in his advance; she is at his mercy, and she has no power to change it. Her eyes are alive with fear. Her eyes know nothing but fear. His most base and primal instincts are running free with filth as he tears off her tunic. Her screams fall on deaf ears. With rough hands he grabs her supple body and prepares for the most unholy consummation of the flesh.

It was at this point that Kuno bid the vision to cease. He half-slurred out aloud, "What... _savagery _lurks in the heart of man."

"But I am NOT THAT MAN!" he yelled, directing his indignant rage at God, or Akane, or anyone else that might give enough of a damn to listen. Maybe even Ranma.

With both his thoughts and the room spinning, and his emotional inhibitions struck dead by the alcohol, he placed his head between his knees and began to cry. When he had cried all the tears he was capable of, he laid down on the floor as a vortex of nausea fought some unseen war in his stomach, and watched the ceiling spin until he slipped into unconsciousness.

He awoke in the late twilight hours to a pounding in his head. He was strangely untroubled by it. In fact, he felt oddly at peace.

_"I had the good fortune not to vomit from my immoderation... I doubt I will spend a night like that again."_ Then he continued to a different train of thought, and let the slightest hint of a smile cross his face: "_I have a feeling that today will be an alright day. I will work to be a better man."_

He left the study and stepped outside just as dawn was breaking. There he meditated to the sound of birds chirping until it was well into morning. He did not allow his terrible hangover to get the better of him, or spoil the tranquility of his meditation. At last the time came for him to get ready for school. He left the grounds of the Kuno estate more ready to face the day than any time he could remember.

He entered the Furinkan High courtyard ten minutes before the bell. Ranma, who was leaning against a tree beside Akane, took notice of him and called out, "Yo Kuno! I see you're still in one piece. If you're ever in the mood for another beating, just let me know!"

On any other day up until now, Tatewaki would have unleashed a torrent of verbal abuse and charged blindly at Ranma, but today he held his tongue. Today, things would be different. And so he harnessed all the sincerity he could muster and said, "Good morning, Ranma. I'm glad to see you're well."

He walked over to Ranma and extended his hand in a sympathetic gesture. Ranma was almost in a state of shock. "I'm ain't gonna shake your hand, you creep," Ranma said, in part due to personal enmity and in part because he had no idea how to react.

"I understand. It's not a problem." _"And I mean that. After all I've done, it doesn't surprise me that he's not terribly receptive to my goodwill."_

Then he turned to Akane, who had watched the previous exchange in bewilderment. Keeping a respectful distance, Kuno said, "And a good morning to you, too, Akane. I hope everything's going alright in your life."

"Uh... thanks," was the only reply the youngest Tendo could come up with.

"Well, I'd hate to impose myself on the two of you any longer, so I'm going to head to class. Ranma, Akane, it was nice talking to both of you. I'll see you later!"

He was met with two faces staring blankly, until Ranma said, "Yeah... see ya."

Somewhat disappointed, Tatewaki took his cue to leave.

_"I suppose I am no miracle worker. It will take more than a day's worth of change for them to see me differently. But I did what I could, and there is no sense in sulking over it. Maybe they will come around to me one day, maybe they won't. Life will go on regardless, and I can't spend all of it fretting over Akane and the Pig-tailed Girl. Perhaps there will be others I'll find. Sometimes you have to settle for second best. There can be no guarantee, but I'll try to conduct myself like a gentleman, and if they come, they come. And if they don't, then I can take satisfaction in knowing that I've done the right thing."_

Though he felt a bit sad, Kuno walked into the schoolbuilding with his head held high.

Meanwhile Ranma was still in the courtyard scratching his head over their encounter.

"What the hell has gotten into that weirdo? Did he hit his head or somethin'?"

"I don't know," Akane said. "But at least he didn't try to grab me this time."

The school-day passed without incident, save chemistry, where Kuno knocked over a beaker of sodium hydroxide and was chastised for his carelessness. When the last bell had rung, he gathered his belongings and head out into the hall. As he was navigating the crowded hallway, he caught sight of Nabiki by a window, rearranging papers in her bag. Feeling that he had nothing better to do, he walked over to her.

"Nabiki Tendo."

She looked up from her bag. "Kuno baby! What's up?"

"Nothing in particular, I was just in the mood to talk."

She gave an exaggerated frown and mockingly said, "Whatever happened to 'don't patronize me woman, I wish to be left alone'?"

"That was then, this is now. If it makes you feel any better, I regret saying that."

Nabiki let out a small laugh. "Don't get all worked up, it didn't actually bother me at all."

He rolled his eyes. "I suppose you're well above that whole 'human emotion' thing."

"Of course I am. Who do you take me for?"

"I don't know. A money-grubbing little girl who thinks she's going to control the world one day?"

Nabiki placed a hand on her heart in pretend agony. "Oh, Kuno baby, you wound me. Don't you know that I think there's so much more to life than money?"

"Like what?"

"Why, all the things to spend your money on!" Both of them laughed.

"You're a real devil, you know." Kuno could not contain his grin at this point.

"Me? A devil? Now where on Earth could you get that idea?"

"You're nothing more than a common swindler, Nabiki, and I wonder how far that will take you in life. But there will be plenty of time to worry about that. In the meantime, would you care to accompany me to the ice cream parlor? If you're free."

"Ooh, you insult me with one breath and then ask me out with another. And you call _me_ a devil. Very well, I accept your invitation, on one condition, of course. You're paying, right?"

Kuno had a self-satisfied smirk on his face.

"Why am I not surprised?"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

As Kuno walked with Nabiki, his body was physically present, but his mind had drifted off to a cool April day three years prior.

At the gate of the Kuno mansion, there stands a boy of fourteen. His head is shaven, his face is pale. He enters the house to find it empty. His father is not home. In the dining room, he finds a half-drained bottle of wine, and an ashtray with the stubs of eight or nine cigarettes. This is strange, because the boy has not known his father to be a smoker.

He looks in the room of the family patriarch and sees drawers left open, containing nothing. His clothes, his valuables, gone. Family pictures remain on the dresser, untouched in the hasty departure. The boy picks up a picture. It is him, his father, and his sister, on a weathered beach in what may have been happier times. He sets it down, feeling the bile of emotional turmoil beginning to build within him.

He walks to his room, and lights a candle. There, the child waits. He thinks, but he does not understand. All that he knows is that he will not cry. It is unbecoming of a man, and he is determined not to cry. But as the cold rigors of reality beat into him the betrayal he has suffered, he relents. Tatewaki Kuno weeps for his loss, and knows shame.

"Uh, Kuno-baby? Hello? Are you there?" Nabiki was staring at him with a bewildered expression.

"My apologies. Please pardon me for my inattentiveness. My mind was in another place." Kuno could barely find his words after the troubling daydream.

"It was like you were on a different planet, there, for a while."

"It felt as though I were." Kuno stopped walking and looked over to Nabiki.

Nabiki sighed and stopped with Kuno. "What is it this time?"

"Tell me, Nabiki Tendo, have you ever been betrayed?"

"Betrayed? What are you going on about, now?"

"It is just the ramblings of a fool. Forget I ever asked," Kuno responded, and began walking again.

Nabiki found his behavior puzzling, but that was nothing new for Tatewaki Kuno, so she managed to shrug it off to his inherently bizarre nature.

He was still walking ahead of her, and Nabiki went into a light jog to catch up.

"Really in a hurry to get to the ice cream shop and spend some money on me, huh?"

"I am in no particular hurry to part with my funds, but neither am I especially reluctant to. I feel money serves little purpose accumulating dust in a vault."

"Not a fan of money for money's sake, eh? Gee, I don't know if this is gonna work out, Kuno-baby."

"There's more to life than silver, Nabiki Tendo," Kuno said, as he slowed his brisk walk to a more reasonable pace.

"Silver? Get with the times! I, for one, take cash."

"And speaking of taking cash, here's the ice cream parlor."

Kuno stopped beside her. "Shall I lead you in?" he asked, offering her his hand.

"Ooh, you're a real gentleman, Kuno-baby, but I can lead myself. My hand is fine where it is."

"I wouldn't want to be presumptuous," he said, masking an inkling of disappointment.

"Right, because Tatewaki Kuno has _never _been known to be presumptuous with the girls, now has he?" Nabiki had a sarcastic, but gentle smile on her face.

"I cannot deny the past, I can only attempt to learn and move on from it. Come now, let's get ourselves something to eat. On me."

"Now that's the talk I like to hear! Let's go!"

Kuno opened the door for Nabiki and they walked into the shop and took seats across from each other in a booth. A waitress came over with a couple of menus, detailing a superlative array of desserts. Kuno took a menu, but he already knew what he was going to order. Before the waitress walked away he indicated that he was ready.

"I shall have a small vanilla ice cream cone, please," Kuno said as he handed the menu back to the waitress. Nabiki's mouth was agape, and she was staring at him with a mixture of shock and disgust.

"A small vanilla? Are you serious, you came all the way here to get that?"

"Sometimes it is the simple things in life that are the truest pleasures."

Nabiki rolled her eyes. "I'm sorry Kuno-baby, but that is total BS. If you don't order something more exotic, then I'm walking out of here right now." She had folded her arms, and was staring blankly at him. The waitress could barely stifle her laughter.

"Very well..." Kuno began. "If it pleases my lady-friend, I will have a cone of chocolate. Medium."

Nabiki let out an unrestrained sigh. "I guess you gotta start somewhere."

"She's a real keeper, that one. Make sure you treat her right!" The waitress said. For a moment Kuno could've sworn that he saw Nabiki blush.

"And what would you like?" The waitress turned to Nabiki.

"Unlike _someone_, I know how to treat myself. I'll have the deluxe caramel fudge brownie sundae. Oh, and a coffee shake, hold the whipped cream." She reclined a bit after placing the order, looking satisfied with herself. The waitress took her menu and walked off with a giggle.

"Our server seems to think of us as objects of mockery," Kuno said, in what seemed to be an idle observation, but he had one hand bunched into a fist.

Nabiki rolled her eyes again. "Oh, please."

_"Just when I think this guy has started to change, he has to go and say something pompous like that. He's not half-bad looking, if he wasn't dense as a brick he might have a chance with somebody,"_ she thought.

"Does something ail you, Nabiki Tendo?"

"No, I was just thinking, that's all."

"It is a good thing I cannot read minds, for who knows what ghastly schemes and villainous plans lurk in yours that would infect my honorable nature."

"Now, _that's_ the kinda thing you definitely wanna say to please your date," Nabiki said, seeming bored.

"Find cheer, I was only kidding. You see, I don't look at you the way others do. Where others see a conniver, a swindler, a spinster, I see a woman with enough good-nature to grace me with her company, when so few others willingly do. I'm not saying the others are wrong-"

"Hey!" Nabiki interjected.

"But I do believe that there's more to you than that." Kuno laid his arm halfway across the table. "Is your hand still fine where it is?" He was gazing intently at Nabiki.

"No," she said, as she moved her hand to meet his. "It is now, though." There was a barely visible smile on her face as she gave his hand a gentle squeeze. But she quickly pulled back as she caught sight of the waitress with their food.

The Deluxe Caramel Fudge Brownies Sundae was as flamboyant as its name suggested. The chocolate cone was simple and unadorned, which suited Kuno's tastes. Between them was the coffee shake, which the waitress had had the presence of mind to plant two straws in.

"It seems as if the waitress is expecting me to share my milkshake. She must be crazy."

"That's fine if you do not wish to part with any of it, I am content with my chocolate cone here."

"Tell you what, I'll let you drink from the same milkshake as me for 500 yen."

"If you believe I am going to pay that, you are sorely mistaken."

"C'mon, Kuno-baby, I know this is icky, but drinking out of the same shake is supposed to be 'romantic'."

"That would be a meaningless gesture if paid for. It would either be done for free, or not at all."

"Tell you what, since you've been so generous with all this food, if you act like you really want it, I'll let you do it for free."

"And who, pray tell, has said that I want to?"

"I have. Now prove that you want to share this shake with me. Don't be a food prude, it's really good, and I know you want some."

Kuno smiled. "As you wish." A battle aura seemed to envelope him. "Nabiki Tendo, I, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High demand that you share your milkshake with me or I shall take my sword and slay you where you stand, you vile, greedy temptress!"

Nabiki was widely grinning. "Oh, Kuno-baby, I'm touched that you would put in so much passion just for me! I think you deserve some of that shake." She pushed it to the center of the table. "C'mon, have some," she said. Kuno leaned over and put a straw in his mouth. He drank. It was good. Then, Nabiki leaned in, and they were both huddled together, drinking the coffee milkshake as though it were water from the Fountain of Youth.

She was close, so close to Kuno. He could smell her perfume. Her big brown eyes seemed bigger than they had ever been before. He wanted to take his hand and run it through her hair, but he decided against it. Before he had time to reconsider, the milkshake was drained dry and Nabiki leaned back against the booth.

She returned her attention to her sundae, which was beginning to melt.

"Hey," She said, looking up from her dessert.

"Yes?"

"I was thinking about that question you asked me earlier, and I can't remember a time that I've been honest to God betrayed. Why did you ask that, anyway?"

Kuno's expression grew somber. "Young and vulnerable, as a boy I was frightened by the ways of the world. My mother was taken from me at an age far too young, and I was left to depend on my father. In essence, he became my world. He was never far removed, and he showed me love that has never since been matched. He was the man I most admired, the man I placed all the faith and trust in the world in. And then without a word, he left me. Left a fourteen-year-old boy to fend for himself and care for his sister. You can't fathom the scale of the damage it did to my mind and soul."

"I can hazard a guess that it was a lot," Nabiki said sympathetically.

"Indeed it was," Kuno continued. "And then three years later, he returns. But does he apologize for the world of hurt he's inflicted on our family? Does he attempt to atone for his sins? Does he make even a perfunctory expression of regret? No, never. That devil of a father doesn't have it in him to be so contrite. He wouldn't know shame if he was the most infamous criminal on this Earth. And I reckon it will forever be so."

"Yeah, Principal Kuno doesn't strike me as the most apologetic type. But hey, look on the bright side! Having to care for yourself really built a lot of character in you."

"I ask little of you, Nabiki Tendo, and I ask that you refrain from deceiving me with flattery."

"No, you idiot, I mean it! If I didn't think you were an alright guy, I wouldn't be here with you right now."

"That, and the significant wealth of the House of Kuno," he retorted.

"Well yeah, I'm not gonna lie, that too. But you know how you said that you see me differently than others? Well I see you differently than other people, too. To the rest of the world, you're an overbearing, obsessive, pompous, incredibly dense buffoon. And I'll give them their credit, sometimes they're right. But there's more to you than that. And lately I've noticed a change in the way you carry yourself. You're a bit more down to Earth, and I like it."

"Though I like not to admit it, I alone am responsible for the dismal reputation I've brought upon myself. It was contemplating this unpleasant reality that drove me to pursue some semblance of change. It gladdens my heart to see that there is already some positive reception."

"Kuno-baby..." Nabiki put her elbows on the table and leaned forward.

"Yes, miss Tendo?"

"I can't say I've known the pain of having a parent abandon me. But my mother died when I was just a little girl, so I can share the pain of losing someone close to you. But to have two parents effectively leave your life must be hard to bear." Nabiki stretched her arm across the table and took Kuno's hand in hers, and held it tight.

"Nabiki Tendo... When I am sailing on rough waters, will you be there for me?" Somehow Tatewaki Kuno could not meet her gaze.

"I can't promise I will be, but I'll try my best, okay?"

Kuno smiled in reply. He couldn't find it in him to speak, but it was not out of any sense of awkwardness or tension. A warm sensation in his belly simply rendered words unnecessary. Just feeling her touch was enough to satisfy him.

At last Nabiki retracted her hand to finish her sundae. But for Kuno, the moment lingered on. She finished her sundae in silence, but a cordial one.

At last, after bringing the spoon to her mouth one final time, she happily blurted out, "Ahhh, that was delicious! Thanks so much Kuno-baby!"

"The pleasure was all mine, believe me."

Nabiki hailed the waitress to bring the check.

"How was everything?"

"Everything was great," Nabiki said.

"Good, your total is 2200 yen."

Kuno reached into his pocket and his heart sunk. His wallet was not there. He checked the other pocket. Not there either. He was fearing an unpleasant scenario.

"What's wrong, Kuno-baby? You look upset."

"My wallet appears to be eluding me. I fear I may have left it at home."

"You didn't." There was a spark in Nabiki's eyes. Not a friendly one, either.

The waitress looked on impatiently. "How are you going to pay for this?"

Kuno pulled his sword out and laid it across the table. "I have more than enough money to pay for this, may I leave this family heirloom here as collateral while I go retrieve my wallet?"

The owner had now walked over. "What's all this fuss about?"

"He doesn't have any money, apparently he wants to pay with his sword." The waitress said.

"Listen pal, I don't want your hunk of wood. You eat, you pay. With money, not 'family heirlooms'. It's simple as that. Hey girl, do you have any mon-"

"No, I don't believe she does," Kuno quickly interrupted.

The owner, clearly aggravated, said "Well, one of you has got to pay or I'm calling the cops."

Nabiki released an all-too-audible sigh. "Fine, I'll pay," she said. Kuno froze, he had never seen her spend her own money, and this did not bode well for him.

"At least someone's got some sense," the owner said after Nabiki paid him.

She walked out in a huff immediately. In the time it took Kuno to pick up his sword and sheathe it she was already out the door. He hurried outside and shouted "Nabiki!"

She turned around. He ran to her. "You know, that's the first time you've just called me Nabiki," she said.

Kuno put a tender hand on her shoulder and said "I know that money makes you happy, and I don't have a problem with that. But I hope you can find other things that will make you happy, too."

"Maybe someday, Kuno-baby," she said, brushing his hand off her shoulder. "Maybe someday." Then she walked away.

Kuno didn't follow her, he just stood and stared as she receded in the distance. Then he sat down on a bench and held his head in his hands, thinking he could really use a cigarette, now.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Kuno had ample time to think, sitting on that park bench. He thought about a lot of things as a picturesque sunset began to dazzle the world in the west. As he watched every hue of orange and red meld together his thoughts receded and he slipped into a trance. If Nabiki could see him now, she'd see a calm, untroubled mind undefiled by earthly gold. He thought about her, but with neither a positive nor negative connotation. She was simply Nabiki Tendo, a woman as mysterious as a field long unploughed. He wondered if he could take a sickle and cut away the long grass and rough stalks and find what girl really lurked underneath.

_"I draw my breath in silence, mystified by a girl who the whole world seems to have figured out. But the whims and guesses of the world are not congruent with my own. I will have to find my own path."_

As he made his way home, he felt an uprising of energy through his body, as if to counteract his bitterness about the date. By the time he was at his mansion he was ready to do battle with the world. And so he did the next best thing: he practiced his swordsmanship. For hours. And hours. And with an intensity that would frighten even the fiercest of opponents. Every nimble stroke, deceptive juke, added to his training and his ability.

_"Perhaps if I improve myself enough, I may even be able to impress Nabiki Tendo,"_ he thought, only adding to his boundless energy and Zen-like focus. Kuno had given himself a work-out to be proud of and he went to bed feeling a little better than when the date ended. The next morning, he was even looking forward to school.

Kuno arrived at the Furinkan gates to see Akane and Ranma little ways ahead. To his surprise, she gave him a wave.

"Hey Kuno!" She almost sounded cheerful. Never had she approached him with this tone. Or ever, to his recollection, approached him at all.

"Akane Tendo, always glad to see you."

"Nabiki told me about what happened yesterday. I think she got into a fuss for nothing."

"Is that what you think, Akane Tendo? Perhaps you could work some sort of magic on your sister to make her think the same."

"That might be a little beyond my power, but I can always try, I guess."

"You needn't trouble yourself," Kuno said.

"And another thing, is my mind playing tricks on me, or have you been acting a little more humble lately? It's as if you're not some kind of perverted psycho after all."

"Never speak too soon," Kuno laughed.

"Yep, never speak too soon," Ranma said, with simmering antipathy.

"Never mind Ranma, I like the way you've become, and I'm sorry for the way I've treated you," Akane said.

"You're gracious and gentle as always, Akane Tendo."

"If it's not too late to ask, can we be friends?"

"I would be leagues beyond daft to deny the friendship of such a kind and charming girl. I would be honored to be your friend."

"Oh Kuno, I was so wrong about you," Akane said, as she enveloped him in a warm hug.

"Say all that lovey-dovey friendship crap you want, but keep your hands off of her, you damn creep," Ranma said with unconcealed contempt.

"Now I have no intention of disrespecting your authority as fiancé, but I believe that is her choice to make. If she wishes for my embrace, then it is her alone to decide it."

Ranma was a loose cannon at this point. "That's it, I've had enough of your BS 'change' that any dumbass can see through. There's no way I'm letting you touch Akane, and that's final!"

"I have no desire to fight you. Why can't you let her live as she pleases?"

"Enough talking, you can talk after I've knocked your teeth out, you disgusting pervert!"

"I have no quarrel with you, Ranma. Why can't you see that?"

"Shut up, you lying bastard, you've tried to make my life hell this whole year!"

"If I could go back and make things right, I would. But the past is the past and there is nothing I can do to change it."

"Oh, spare me the noble act," Ranma said. "I'm gonna kick your ass!"

With a full sprint, Ranma closed the distance in mere seconds, aiming a powerful punch at Kuno's head that he skillfully ducked.

"If you insist on a fight, then I'm afraid I must take you up on your offer," Kuno proclaimed, as he drew his bokken. Ranma came at him with a flurry of punches. Up high. Down low. Kuno moved with a swiftness to parry the blows. With each block, Ranma became angrier, and thereby more reckless. More powerful blows were more wildly aimed. And in this, Kuno found an opening.

With the hunk of wood that was his most prized possession, he made a tangential contact with Ranma's shoulder that was just enough to stifle his offensive and give Kuno some much-needed confidence. With all the grace of a samurai he sent Ranma's fists astray each time they came for him. Then he went on the advance. A blow to Ranma's right knee. A jab at his solar plexus. And a direct hit to the abdomen that sent him teetering backwards.

It seemed like something from the most wild and fiery horizons of his imagination: Kuno was beating Ranma in a fight. The beleaguered Saotome was inching backwards as he struggled to catch his breath. The kendo captain raised his sword for a finishing blow, but some semblance of mercy overtook him and he said, "Are you willing to cease this foolishness, Ranma?"

Ranma replied with an ugly, defiant scowl. "Like hell I ain't, you dirty son of a bitch." The thought of being backed into a corner like a frightened animal was disgraceful. And by the likes of Kuno, of all the people in the world, it had to be him. The idea of such a disgusting outcome put him into a frenzy, a kind of which Kuno had never had the misfortune to witness.

He returned to the battle with a vengeance. A torrent of punches came with such speed that the swordsman could barely muster the energy to parry them, much less counterattack. Ranma seemed to be glowing with an aura of malice and he was going to direct all of it at Kuno. The pompous, posing, perverted, pathetic excuse for a man who had the gall, the nerve to think that he could stand toe-to-toe with the greatest martial artist under the sun. Kuno had made a fool out of him, and Kuno would have hell to pay.

In his first contact of the match, Ranma cast a blow that felt as dense as lead to Kuno, weighted down by the sheer magnitude of his hate. He recoiled from the pain, but he was not yet ready to give up. He made a hasty horizontal slice with his blade followed by an uppercut. Ranma dodged both effortlessly.

He retaliated with harsh, heavy blows. Kuno blocked those that he could, but a particularly powerful strike sent him sprawling backwards. "That's enough! Can't you leave him alone?" he heard Akane say. As he lay in the dirt, reeling in pain and tired beyond belief, as if a gift from the heavens, a last gasp of courage and willpower overtook him. He picked up his sword and charged straight at Ranma, uttering the battle cry, "For the House of Kuno!"

With a lazy flick of his wrist, Ranma knocked the sword from Kuno's hand. The kendo captain felt his heart sink as Ranma stepped toward him, all his fear and distress entirely abated. Shoving the swordless swordsman back, he said, with an air of distant aloofness, "Get your head out of the clouds, boy. You're not on my level."

Then with the morning birds chirping, and a soft breeze gently swaying the trees, Ranma, calm as the day, ended the match with a shattering blow to the head, sending Kuno to the oblivion of unconsciousness.

He awoke to a blurry vision of what appeared to be a girl.

"Oh, he really got carried away this time." As his vision began to correct itself, he saw that the girl was Akane. He wasn't sure how much time had passed, probably not too much. His mouth was salty with blood. He stirred, and every muscle in his body ached.

"Oh good, you're awake! Do you think you need to see a doctor? You're really beat up."

"The only thing a doctor could do for me is prescribe me with narcotics, and I would rather live with the pain, to remind me of the folly of violence."

"It's funny hearing you say that, because you used to go swinging that sword of yours around at the slightest little thing.

"I like to believe that I have changed, if only a little, but I still foolishly entered this altercation for which I have dearly paid."

"And you know what? I'm not mad at you for it. Ranma was itching for a fight, and there was nothing you could've done to avoid it. And plus, you did it for me! And not in a gross way, either, but you stood up for my right to make my own choices. I'm just sorry Ranma took it the way he did."

"Where is that scoundrel, anyway?" Kuno asked.

"Oh, he went to class, but I didn't go with him, I wanted to make sure you were okay."  
>"While I thank you for the kind gesture, you needn't put me before your education, you ought to get to class."<p>

"And leave you here? No way! Screw class, let's get you patched up and go someplace where we can forget about this whole mess." Akane tugged at Kuno's dirty and battered sleeve.

"Let me help you up, Kuno," she said, offering him her hands. He sat up, and let out a mixture of a sigh and a laugh.

_"Who could have foretold that Akane Tendo would be taking time out of her day to help me?"_

"Under normal circumstances I would decline your offer to help me upright. But in this wretched state I could use all the help I can get," Kuno said, taking her hands. She pulled him up, not without a little difficulty, as Kuno was a large fellow and wasn't much help getting himself up.

"Thank you, Akane Tendo. Your kindness could defy an army of samurai and mend the Grand Canyon," Kuno said, standing, but stooped.

"Oh, it's nothing. Y'know, you can just call me Akane, if you want."

"I like Akane Tendo. It shows my respect for you, to dignify you with your full name."

"It's feels kinda formal, but whatever. C'mon, let's get out of here. We'll find someplace where we can have fun." Akane looked past the battered, broken Kuno and let her mouth spread into a radiant smile. Though it physically pained him, Kuno tried to return the gesture. He would do it for Akane. He would do it for her.

Akane was happy that he could muster a smile in his condition. She grabbed his hand and said, "You ready? Let's go!" She broke into a run and dragged Kuno behind her. The physical activity instantly put him in anguish. They had barely left campus when it became clear that they would have to go about this differently.

"Steady now, Akane Tendo. My body is sore, I am weary, can we not carry on at a more reasonable pace?"

Akane slowed to a walk, still pulling Kuno to ease his burden. "I don't know what I was thinking! I guess the sense of adventure and skipping school, made me forget that Ranma almost made you a cripple."

"It is not imperative that you rub it in."

"I'm sorry. But why do you have to say 'it is not imperative'? Can't you just say 'don't rub it in'? No one will shoot you for using a less fancy word."

"I am no dilettante in the field of language, I relish in the vast array of choices we have in our vocabulary to put to admirable use in our lexicon. What point does a word serve if it is forbidden to utter it?"

"No one's saying it's forbidden, it's just a little pompous, that's all."

"Being pompous has always been one of the more common critiques thrown at me, but I will not rush to amend my speech just yet. I will speak simply when the time is appropriate."

Akane turned her head back toward him and laughed. "Gosh, you've always had a thing for being poetic. No one's really seemed to give you any appreciation for it, though."

"I have given up hope of the students at Furinkan regarding my attempts at poetry with anything but indifference or contempt. I suppose that I do it for myself, now."

"You can tell me a poem if you want," Akane said, shifting so they were walking side-by-side.

"Shall I recite you one of the greats? A Shakespearian sonnet, perhaps?"

"No, no, Kuno. Tell me an original."

"Well, I have a vast array at my disposal that I have written about yourself at some point or another, but I imagine they will not be well recieved."

Akane grimaced. "Good God, no. Those ones you used to tell me were so creepy. Come up with one right now!"

"Right now, eh? I suppose I can try my hand at something... Hmm...

_Akane Tendo_

_ Come with me_

_ Captain of Kendo"_

"Wow, that was really bad," Akane said with a giggle.

"I know," Kuno said in return. "You'll have to forgive me, it was written under pressure"

"It's okay. You tried," she gently mocked. "We're close to a park. It'll be a nice place to relax."

And so they walked, hand-in-hand, something that Kuno had dreamed of for so long. And yet something in the back of his mind was nagging him. He didn't know what it was, but something was clouding his emotions.

The park greeted them with a scenic view. Flowers of every color bloomed to provide a pleasant atmosphere. The pair sauntered over the grass to an old oak tree, which Kuno leaned against.

"Does it still hurt pretty bad?" Akane asked.

"That it does."

"Let me help you. Turn around," Akane said with a sweetness that was so sincere that it made Kuno's heart feel like a frail and fragile thing that was only kept in one piece by her care.

Akane mildly massaged his shoulders and back, let her fingers gently press into the back of his neck. She caressed him with her soft palms, and as if by the work of some magic charm, some of Kuno's pain seemed to dissipate.

Before too long Kuno turned around and said, "That was wonderful, thank you."

Akane nuzzled her head against his shoulder and said, "Will you write another poem for me?"

Kuno placed a reassuring hand on her head and said "Of course I will." There was a moment of silence, and then Kuno began:

"_Akane Tendo_

_ There is nothing I long for so much_

_ As the tenderness of your touch"_

Akane picked her head up off his shoulder. "Let me fulfill your longing, then." She squared herself opposite of Kuno and put her arms around his neck, pulling him close. As they gazed intently at each other, letting the moment ripen to perfection, Kuno had a vision of Nabiki. The one who had never cast a blow in anger at him. The one who had always given him the time of day, when no one else would. The one who had treated him like a human, even when he didn't always deserve it.

Even with this vivid mental image, Kuno was succumbing to baleful lust, as the two moved closer together, and Akane eyed his lips. His heart was thundering in his chest. As Kuno swept in to complete the event, he was accosted by a marauding train of thought that ran at a frenzied pace. Akane was bethrothed to another. Akane had a fiancé. Akane was not his to take. This was corrupt, immoral, and ungentlemanly.

These thoughts did not prevent the two from colliding in a passionate kiss. But though there was passion, for Kuno there was a foul taste on his lips. Even as he held her tight, he was reminded that he was kissing the sister of the girl who had always been there for him. One that was engaged to no fiancé. Even as his wayward lust moved his hand to her backside, his thoughts were locking in on another girl. Akane had rejected him time and time again before, perhaps he was better off then.

The kiss was a long one, sweet and tender. Both seemed to know exactly when to end it. After a moment of eye contact giddy Akane buried her head in his chest. Kuno continued to hold her close. Akane squeezed him. "Kuno, are we close enough so you can call me just 'Akane', now?"

"I... I don't...," Kuno stammered in reply, trailing off.

From her pectoral cushion, Akane looked up and said, "Y'know, you've told me a million times that you loved me, and I always hated to hear it. But right about now, I wouldn't mind hearing you say it." Akane was staring at him doe-eyed, blissful. "Tatewaki... Tell me that you love me."

Kuno felt his heart race even faster than before. Staring back into those big brown eyes, he couldn't take it. An amalgam of guilt and regret overtook him, and he looked away. Akane tugged at his robe. "Kuno?" She said, in a voice so tender that it could lull a baby to sleep.

Hearing her speak that way simply broke Kuno. He couldn't bear the internal battle any longer. "Ak-Akane, I'm sorry."

"Sorry? Sorry for what?"

"I'm terribly sorry, I must go now!" Kuno unwrapped his arms around her, and broke off running, not caring about the immense physical pain it brought upon him.

"Kuno? Where are you going, you'll hurt yourself! Kuno, please come back!"

As he ran through the pain, Kuno looked back to see Akane crying. Though it pained him to see her hurting he couldn't stay there, he had to get away from this place. From the now distant oak tree she shouted "I thought you changed!"

_"I thought so, too,"_ he thought bitterly. Though his body could hardly sustain it, he maintained his run until he reached the Kuno estate. When he got there he felt like he was going to die, for a multitude of reasons, but he knew there was work to be done. There were two figures who had been central to his identity for too long. His work began in his bedroom.

Kuno gazed at the two enormous posters affixed to his bedroom wall. The Pig-Tailed Girl and Akane Tendo smiled back at him.

_"On the night of my birth did my parents foresee that I would be utterly transfixed by two emblems of idolatry? Devoting so much of my essence to blind adoration of these creatures has derived me little benefit. The woes of being openly love-stricken, it turned me into a menace, and brought the contempt of both of whom I sought. It was only when I brought it into to check that one of them did soften towards me. But these idols that I once worshipped, are merely a distraction. They are a relic of an unpleasant past, and deserve no pedestal in my life any longer."_

Kuno walked over to the poster of the Pig-Tailed Girl, untaped it from the wall, rolled it up, and threw it on the floor. At the poster of Akane he hesitated for a moment, sliding his hand across her face. Then at last he removed it from the wall and rolled it up.

"Forgive me," he whispered. He took the posters outside next to the firepit in his yard and began stoking a flame. Into the crackling embers he delivered the poster of the Pig-Tailed Girl. _"Good riddance," _he thought.

But as he picked up the poster of Akane. He found the memories of the day rushing back towards him. The request of friendship, the way she stayed to take care of him after the fight, their warm embrace. And their kiss, as sweet and as foul as it could be, it lingered on. Kuno unraveled the poster and looked at it. _"I'm sorry for what I've done to you, Akane Tendo, but my heart belongs to another," _Kuno thought. But at the same time he and Akane had shared a brief but powerful bond that he would never be able to forget. In the end, he decided to keep the poster, but he kept it rolled up in the back of his study.

As the twilight hours approached, Kuno felt the outside beckon to him, and in the privacy of his garden he lifted his head to the heavens, to see if they would offer him some form of guidance. It was a moonless night, and he searched for the lunar entity in vain.

_"Is love as fickle as the phases of the moon? Will I feel the same tomorrow?"_

Then his thoughts turned to Nabiki, and the unpleasant end to their last date.

_"Nabiki, I have made the ultimate sacrifice for you. Will you make a sacrifice for me?"_


End file.
